mr 580

Hopefully Gasman got some info for you-thought I’d pass along some more. Your comment re: retirement is accurate as they are probably 35 years old(I had a new set in 1986). The control pad assembly hasn’t been available in 15 to 20 years. Used to be able to convert them to mag 10a without the key pad but I don’t know if those parts are still around. The motors are also tough to find as well. You can go to Fish 307 website for parts/repair and pull up a schematic then see what is available. They’ll probably work if you don’t mind looking for used parts.

Moving tow point back is a good plan-no cost and you can always move back to original position.

Is your tow line hitting the water at your maximum width? How wide you can run is usually limited by towline angle and mast/reel height. Once tow line hits water that is it unless height is increased. You might tweak your board performance slightly by switching towline from stock Traxstech vinyl line to the no stretch spectra from Amish Outfitters. Moving tow point so boards bite harder might take some drop back out. My experience has been that towline height has been the limiting factor on width regardless of board type or manufacturer.

Check the fuel line fitting where it connects to motor- the o rings can fail so it sucks air. It is piece I have replaced. Look at primer bulb and fuel line especially if you have used fuel with ethanol. If those items check out- might have to clean carb.

You might want to look at Simrad GO Series- they will network with your Lowrance. I’m using one as a chart plotter with Navionics chip and very happy with it.

Ron, use an improved Albright knot for your braid to wire connection. If you want to add a section of mono to the braid use a double uni knot.

Seems like a big difference-maybe the counter or gear on spool have been changed? See what happens if you swap counter from “accurate” rigger to one that is off. You can also count teeth on gears to see if any difference rigger to rigger.

Saw a video on you tube where a guy boiled some water in a big pot then rotated the rod to even the heat from the steam. After a couple minutes the epoxy was loose enough to remove handle and seat. Used welding gloves to protect hands. A heat gun would probably work as well. Careful even heat is the key.

I picked up a couple on West Coast. Rather than using oil in the sponge that comes with them, I used canned tuna. They catch fish - something different to play with.

Used to be that many 15’s shared same block as a 9.9 - just were setup and rated at different specs. So you can definitely use a 15 on an 18 footer. To get under 1 mph you’ll need a trolling bag or buckets. I use a bag on my Lund to get to .9 mph on my 17 foot Lund with an 8 hp.

Another option could be Chautauqua-not as remote as Adirondacks but closer to Rochester. You could use some of the saved travel dollars toward fishing boat rentals and the boys could catch a variety of fish. Plenty of panfish along with good walleye, bass and musky fishing. There is some shore fishing, but is limited especially in July and August. If you have access to a dock the kids could wear themselves out with worms under a bobber for panfish.

X2 on Legacy’s comment on washing off scent products. When I was playing around with scent and Smelly Jelly was the worst, you had to get the scent off or you had a mess in your boxes. After I had some lures get discolored from left on scent, I would have a tray with Dawn dish soap and water to throw lures in when they were swapped out. Scent probably helped catch fish, but I quit using it because of the mess it made in the boat and the extra work cleaning lures.

Tuf-Line does offer two types of lead core. One is Tuf-Line Lead Core which has a polyester sheath which I would put in the traditional lead core category where a Willis will work fine. The other choice which this topic relates to is the Tuf-Line Micro Lead with a Spectra sheath and is advertised as 30% thinner and stronger. Allows for use on smaller reels and is supposed to have similar sink rate by being smaller diameter. That thinner diameter makes it harder to do the Willis for me. I use the Micro Lead on Saltist 50’s with 10 colors and have been happy with it. I use back to back uni knots to tie it. For shorter cores I use Stealth Core and use the Willis. To me the Micro Lead has an advantage in a longer lengths- not so much especially 5 colors or less. I have no interest in any lead core company by the way.

For someone looking to tie in a section of mono to use in a release into lead core, they probably should look at using a traditional nylon sheathed lead core like Mason or Stealth Core. I say this as the nylon sheathed cores are easier to tie with a Willis knot which likely would be the best choice to go through the rod guides easily. I use the Tufline micro lead on my 10 colors and have never had much luck with the thinner line and the Willis knot. Putting a number of sections of mono in a lead core means a lot of knots so they have to slide through the guides and be strong. I’m not a fan of having lots of knots so I’d run a straight 5 color if I could only have one lead core rod and was after eyes on Erie.

I updated an older Minn Kota to a I Pilot Terrova with Universal Sonar last season on my Lund. Real happy with it- remote works great and the jog feature on spot lock is very nice. Put a Helix 7 in bow and that is very clear and is great for vertical jigging. I thought the Terrova’s stowing by hand might tend to be more trouble free than the Ulterra self stow feature. Wish I had updated sooner now.